Ideas for staying awake while driving solo

[Will_m]

Amphetamines. Preferably meth.

 

[Rich M]

10 hrs aint too bad for me. Got family 9 and 10 hrs 1-way each.

See if you can get some rest the day before and hit some caffiene on an empty stomach.

 

[Azone]

I once got so angry at a guy I went hunting with that I made it from Paonia CO to King City CA in about 14 1/2 hours, diesel stops only and nothing else mattered. I could not get that guy out of my truck fast enough. Being angry was the best for staying awake.
But my usual go to is some good ol christian crank (coffee or energy drink) and hot jerky or hot salamis. Pulling over and taking a nap thirty mins to an hour long works best.
Don’t drive tired, it’s just as bad as driving drunk.
Also, avoid anyone in a Prius in the state of Utah. I don’t know what the deal is but the last three trips to CO have involved someone with Utah plates almost screwing my life up.
Safe travels everyone.

 

[Rob5589]

Definitely sunflower seeds. I prefer black pepper. White monster energy drinks, a Dr. Pepper fountain drink to slowly sip on between cheeks full of sunflower seeds. Chewing gum, peanut M&M’s, peanut butter M&M’s, baked Jalepeno chips, hot fry chips. Good music to rock out to. Podcasts put me right to sleep and so do audiobooks. Or, the best one yet, have a couple of kids in the backseat that constantly fight, cry, wine, or tell you every 30 minutes they have to go to the bathroom.

Damn dude. You driving or smoking...?!

 

[butcherboy]

Damn dude. You driving or smoking...?!

Just driving. I don’t get all of that usually, just some of it.

 

[highcj5]

I’ve driven to the north central-ish part of Kansas the past 2 years. Drive straight thru. It’s easier for me to get in the bed early the night before and leave at 3 in the am. I don’t think I could drive all night in the dark. I would start to nod off. The hardest part for me is leaving in the am and the first couple of hours are in the dark. After that, I’m good. By the time I hit my destination, I’m jacked up. The only stops I do are for gas. Get snacks to eat while I’m there. It’s a 19 hour drive
Good luck to you and be safe.

 

[chapman8523]

NOT Huberman Lab podcasts.

Or Lex Fridman, both are great, just not when you're tired.

 

[prm]

5 hr energy. Audio Books. I stay mentally engaged with books. Not with music.

 

[MattB]

Surprised by all the nicotine users.

I do cat naps when needed. 30-45 mins does wonders. Not worth waking up dead.

I haven’t chewed in a few years, but I used to chew on all really long drives (and almost never outside of that). Between the nicotine and the oral aspect of it (somewhat similar to seeds with the spitting) it definitely helped keep me awake. Never had a problem quitting nicotine cold turkey when it was all over.

 

[Touchdown88]

I girl scream at the top of lungs when I get tired. It seems to wake me right up.

 

[Dust Rider]

Trucker speed aka Ephedrine and snuff.

 

[Lurch12]

Snacks, and frequently changing the radio. Pod casts, music, and stand up comedy

 

[Traveler]

Drive till your tired then pull over and sleep. I used to drive all night, but no more. I will still drive 14-15 hours, stop at a hotel sleep for 5 then go another 14. Just feels better and safer. The 5-6 hours lost won’t really matter

 

[PaHunter86]

Since I work nightshift it is easy for me to stay awake and drive all night. When we go to Disney World we leave the next night after my shift. Leave Pa around 7pm and usually pull into the resort around 11am. Then I just stay wake until after dinner and then transition back to sleeping at night for the trip. Longest stretch I've done with no sleep is 46hrs but I wouldn't advise that. My best advise is to get plenty of rest prior to the trip and if you need to pull over to nap.

 

[D S 319]

Rookie numbers. Just drive.

 

[NW Hunt€r]

I listened to Meateater podcasts from Washington state to NW Colorado last year going solo.
Steve is fascinating.

 

[*zap*]

The e-collar really worked the best of all things I tried. Drove all around the country when I was training/selling dogs...well I always drank strong coffee.

 

[Mikido]

Don’t do it. Change your plans. Not worth the risk, ever.

 

[MightyWhitey]

Just pull over.

I’m a lineman, and about 10yrs ago I was up in the bucket with another lineman and we were changing out a transformer in the middle of the night that fed a restaurant on the side of the highway. I was tightening up our last connection when I looked up and saw headlights bouncing and coming at us, fast. I dropped down in the bucket and tried to wedge myself as tigh against the sides as I could, expecting this vehicle to hit our truck and throw us out of the bucket. The other guy fell on top of me and then I heard the explosion but no impact. Then the wire fell down on top of us and started firing up on top of our bucket. That’s when I realized they had hit the pole breaking it and it fell on top of us. When the wire was firing up I could feel the heat on my back through my winter clothes and I remember the thought going through my mind that I might burn to death in the bottom of this bucket if this keeps up. It stopped firing up and we were able to yell at the foreman to have dispatch drop the feeder. Thankfully that happened pretty fast. When we got down out of the air there was a teenage kid in a minivan still in gear high centered on the pole he’d just broke off at the ground. He’d fell asleep, jumped the median, crossed the oncoming lanes, jumped the ditch, blew through a steel streetlight pole, and blew through the pole we were working on. It’s a miracle that him and the whole crew aren’t dead. But everybody walked away without a scratch.

I suck at driving at night so now I’ve got a twin bed inside my camper shell, so I just pull over and sleep. Saves me $100 every time I crawl in it. And it’s probably saved mine and others lives.
Just pull over.

 

[.204smokechaser]

Been trying new things myself for driving at night. Too many close calls with animals and black ice.

My newest go to is every 2 hours 100 reps of whatever exercise and jog .25-.5 miles. Keeps the blood flowing.

I do pull the safety card when I can though and take another day or two off to try and drive during the daylight or early morning hours. About Fell asleep at the wheel a few years ago getting back to my station at 9 PM and driving another 7 hours for a wedding that was the next day.